


Sam and Dean and a Damsel In Distress

by MrsO



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angst, Comforting Dean, Comforting Sam, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Hurt/Comfort, Protective Dean Winchester, Protective Sam Winchester
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-28
Updated: 2016-06-25
Packaged: 2018-05-29 19:14:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 17,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6389704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrsO/pseuds/MrsO
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sam and Dean rescue a pretty waitress from a demon, but thats only the beginning of Sarah's story with the Winchesters</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The bar was quiet as Sarah packed up for the night. Her shift had been long and tiring, only broken up by the presence of two very cute out of towners. One had green eyes, and a beaten up leather jacket, clearly a ladies man and a natural flirt he’d been the one flashing the cash, buying shots for the party girls, clearly attracted to girls in shirt skirts and low cut tops, challenging anyone who’d play to a game of pool.  
His friend was quieter, taller and slimmer he’d tucked himself away in the corner of the bar with his laptop, occasionally referring to what appeared to be an overstuffed old leather-bound notebook, nursing his beer and occasionally looking up with what seemed to be fond amusement at his friend’s antics. He’d smiled at her when she’d gone over to collect his empty glass. Up close he was even cuter, she’d thought to herself.

  
_“Homework?” she’d asked, nodding at his computer and book, noting the closely packed text, and the sketch of an animal she didn’t recognise. Flushing slightly he quickly snapped the leather-bound volume closed. “Something like that.”_  
_“Not from round here are you?”_  
_“No, we’re just passing through.”_  
_She gestured over to where his companion seemed to be trying to goad a mountain of a man in a truckers cap into a game of pool. “Take a tip from a local, and keep an eye on your friend over there, that’s Big Mikey he’s talking too and he’s a sore loser, especially to out of town pool sharks.”_  
_Tall guy grinned again. “He’s my brother actually, and he can handle himself-“His eyes flicked down to the badge on your uniform. “Sarah” Something in the way his deep voice spoke her name brought a flush to her cheeks, and a flip to her stomach. “But thanks for the advice.” His eyes lingered on Sarah for a moment longer, and she kept her gaze on his adorable smile, before catching a glimpse of her boss Gary angrily signalling from across the bar, bringing her crashing back down to earth. “I’ve got to go…” She raised an eyebrow in question “Sam, it’s Sam, and that’s my brother Dean over there.” They both looked over in time to see Dean potting the black in what looked like a decisive victory. Raising his hands in victory he span just in time to see an angry Mikey’s fist heading for his jaw. The sound of the impact made Sarah wince, but Sam was already stuffing his laptop and notes into a beaten old messenger bag. The burly bartender and Gary had waded in by now, stopping the bar brawl in its tracks, and throwing both Dean and Mikey out on their ear. Sam hurried after them, pausing to turn and give Sarah a small wave, setting the butterflies in her stomach flying again._

  
Apart from the bar fight the evening had been busy but uneventful, and Sarah had to suppress a loud yawn as she cashed up the bars till. Without warning the lights flickered before failing totally, plunging the building into almost complete darkness. Sarah took a moment to swear at Gary’s absence. Usually her boss stayed behind to do the till himself, but this evening he’d left early, ordering Sarah to finish the close down and lock up by herself. She reached under the bar for the emergency torch stashed under the till, but that too wasn’t working. Frustrated she flicked the power button on and off a few times with no joy, before dropping the metal tube to the bar. Casting a look outside she could see the buildings nearby were still lit up, so obviously the problem with the power was localised to the bar. Grumpily she tucked the money from the till into the pocket of her uniform and began to feel her way across the room to the passage at the rear of the building that led to the toilets and office where the fuse cupboard was located.  
She was completely unprepared for the hand that clamped over her mouth, pulling her back against a massive chest, her arms pinned to her sides by the vice like grip of a strong arm around her chest. Panicking se struggled in her assailants grip, even as she felt herself being dragged slightly along the narrow corridor, she heard the click of a door opening immediately beside her and roughly she was pushed inside what she recognised by the smell as the men’s toilet. Fuelled by panic and fear she writhed in the uncompromising grip, as a voice whispered in her ear, reaching through to her scrambled brain.

“Sssh, Sarah, easy, easy, it’s Sam, from earlier tonight, I’m not going to hurt you.” Slowly she stilled, and the arm wrapped round her chest loosened slightly. “I’m going to let you go, but you have to be absolutely quiet, do you understand?” She nodded hesitantly and the hand over her mouth lifted, allowing her to take a deep gasping breath. She spun to face him, opening her mouth to demand some answers, the words dying on her lips as he cracked the bathroom door back open an inch. The passage was lit with an unearthly red light. Curiosity winning over fear for the moment she approached the door and Sam, ducking under his tall frame to peek out through the gap in the door. From the narrow vantage point she could just see into the office at the far end. The room was lit with a pulsing red glow which steadily grew brighter and brighter until it almost hurt to look. As Sarah and Sam watched the light began to resolve itself into the shape of a figure, within seconds the white light faded again leaving a man stood in the office doorway, tall and slim, sporting a flapping long coat, and even from the distance Sarah could make out what seemed to be long claw like fingernails. Sam clapped his hand over her mouth again before she could cry out, but a second later the figure turned round and stared directly at them, mouth full of gleaming pointed teeth, and eyes glowing devilish red in the dark room. Sarah screamed as Sam flung the bathroom door wide open and pushed her away from him, back towards the bar.

“Sarah Run!”  
He was hot on her heels as she scrambled back into the main room, but the thing behind them must have moved unbelievably fast as it was already almost on them as Sam slammed the door shut in its face. “What is that thing?” She screamed again as the door to the office passage flew off its hinges sending Sam flying away from her. The glowing red of the creatures eyes were the only light in the bar as it stalked towards her. Sarah backed away from it as far as she could until her back hit the bar itself, awkwardly she stumbled, sliding to the floor in an ungainly heap. Over the things shoulder she could see Sam launch himself at the threat, grasping the creature’s shoulders and spinning it to face him, landing a punch which would have flattened a normal man. The creature didn’t pause, gripping Sam by his T-shirt and lifting him off the ground. From her position cowered by the bar Sarah’s scrabbling hands found the wicker baskets full of heavy glass salt shakers, usually handed out with tequila slammers, which had fallen to the floor in the melee. Without thinking she flung one at the back of the creatures head, not expecting to do any damage, but hoping to distract it from choking Sammy. To her surprise the creature arched its back in obvious pain, letting out an ear splitting yowl that hurt her ears as Sam dropped heavily to the floor. She threw another, and the thing howled again. With inhuman speed in her next blink it had left Sam and was directly in front of her, Sarah felt herself being dragged to her feet, and she screamed as claws raked across her lower arm, blood welling up from the trio of claw marks. As if she weighed no more than a rag doll she was thrown across the room, landing awkwardly across a pile of tables and chairs. Laying across the smashed furniture she raised her head, dazed from the impact. Red eyes was stood over her, an evil grin on its face, showing its pointed teeth. Through blurred vision she could just see in her peripheral vison Sam haul himself to standing and run towards the thing again, but a new voice cut through the chaos, firm and commanding.

“SAM! DOWN!”

Sam dropped to the floor without hesitation and a split second later the sharp retort of a single gunshot split the air. Sarah’s eyes widened as the things back arched and the lights in its eyes suddenly went out. The creature collapsed forward as if its strings had been cut, its full and considerable weight landing directly on top of where Sarah lay, effectively immobilising her.  
Standing in the doorway to the office passage stood Sam’s brother Dean, shiny pistol still raised and aimed, and a cold hard look in his green eyes. There was something in the look in his eyes that scared her almost as much as the creature that was collapsed across her chest, pinning her across the heap of broken and twisted chairs and tables. Panic stricken she tried to push the corpse off of her, but the pain in her bleeding arm and head had her seeing stars, and it took all of her self-control not to throw up. Dean was already pulling Sam to his feet, “You OK?” Sam nodded “I’m fine.” Sarah whimpered softly, drawing the brother’s attention to her and they hurried over to her, sliding the heavy corpse off her. Dean pulled the body to the other side of the room, and Sarah and Sam both looked over as he yelled out in surprise as the body seemed to almost melt, disappearing and leaving nothing but a puddle of black ooze. “Well that’s’ just nasty.” Sam dropped to his knees at her side. “It’s alright, you’re alright, we’ve got you.” Sarah tried to push herself up but before her arms could give up again, Sam slid a supporting arm under her shoulders. “Hey, take it easy.” His hand slid to the back of her head, and Sarah groaned as his gently probing fingers brushed the lump on the back of her skull. He looked up at his brother. “Dude, any ice behind the bar?” Sliding hand firmly under her shoulders and the other under her knees, he lifted her from the twisted metal and carried her over to one of the padded benches by the pool table. Dean came over to join them, first aid kit from behind the bar in one hand, and ice pack in the other. Crouching down in front of her He handed the ice pack over to her and gently guided her good hand up to hold the pack against the gg on the back of her head. “You just keep that there for a while OK?” Dizzily she nodded, as he opened the kit and began to expertly bandage her arm where the creature had mauled her with its claws. Sarah, focussed on Sam, sat by her side on the bench.  
“Who are you guys? What is that thing?” Sam and Dean exchanged a glance.

“What is it? That thing tried to kill me, what the hell was it and what did it want? “  
“Sam took a deep breath. “That was a demon, and we think someone summoned it to the bar tonight.”

“She laughed, hard and brittle. “You’re crazy, there’s no such thing as Demons, it was probably just some junkie or something.”

Dean finished tying off the bandage on her arm. “That look like a junkie loser to you? I’m sorry sweetheart, I really am, but these things are really real, and this one was sent here. Still don’t know why yet though.” “But it’s dead now, right, you killed it.” Sam slipped an arm around her shoulder giving her a gentle squeeze. Despite everything she had witnessed that night every instinct told her that she could trust Sam, and she gratefully leant into the embrace.

“We don’t know yet.” Dean told her “Got to figure out who summoned it and why, before we can tell.”

Sam’s voice was soft and reassuring. “It’s alright though Sarah, we’re not going to leave until we know you’re safe.” Dean had wandered over to the bar, returning with a glass of amber liquid which he handed to Sarah. Gratefully she took it, taking a large gulp, wincing as the neat spirit burnt on its way down.

“Thanks” she coughed. Dean smiled “Whisky, good for shock, and most other things too in my experience.”  
“Sarah?” Sam asked “Are you OK?”  
An almost hysterical laugh escaped from her throat before she could stop it. “Am I OK? Let’s see; some complete stranger breaks into my work in the middle of the night, and rescues me from some Demon who apparently someone wants here, you don’t know if it’s going to come back, and to top everything off, the bar is completely trashed and my boss is almost certainly going to kill me when he sees this mess. So no Sam, I’m not OK.” Twin tracks of tears snaked down her cheeks and she was suddenly aware of how much she was trembling. “So what happens now?”

“We’re going to take you back to your home. You’ll be safe there.” “Dean offered her his hand, pulling her to her feet. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”  
The car park was empty apart from a sleek black Chevy parked in the far corner of the lot. Even with the shock of the nights events Sarah was impressed, “Nice ride. What is she? 1966?” Dean stroked an almost loving hand over the hood as he crossed to the driver’s side. “1967 Chevy Impala, rebuilt her myself, she’s my baby. You know about cars?” Sam held the passenger door open and helped her slide in the back seat. “My dad was a mechanic. Always loved to talk about cars.” Dean looked at her in the rear view mirror. “Was?” Sarah looked at her feet. “Him and mum died a few years ago now. Drunk driver. It’s just me now.” The rest of the short ride was silent apart from Sarah’s directions to the scruffy apartment block where she lived.  
Dean waited in the car, while Sam, ever the gentleman walked her to her apartment door. “One thing I’ve been wondering, how did you know to use the salt?”  
“What do you mean?”  
“Salt. It’s a demon repellent, won’t kill ‘em but it hurts like hell, and they can’t pass through it. I mean the thing almost had me and then you threw all that salt at it. Probably saved my life.”  
Sarah smiled at him. “Honestly? I just picked up the first thing I lay my hands on. Just got lucky I guess.” She reached for her keys as they reached her door. She was sure that Sam had noticed the battered frame and the paint beginning to peel off, but if he had he didn’t mention it. “Deans making an anonymous call to the police reporting teens breaking into the bar, so you don’t have to worry about explaining all this to your boss tomorrow. He seems kind of hard on you.”

She nodded, “You could say that, but at least it’s a steady pay cheque.” He handed her a matchbox with the logo of a local motel, and looking down she could read a hastily scribbled mobile number. ”This is my number, if anything else weird happens ring me. Anytime.”  
“You mean anything weirder than tonight?”  
“Yeah, well I mean it, call me.” He turned to walk away.

“Sam!” He turned back, and in a moment of daring she lifted herself up on her toes to kiss him softly on the cheek. “Thanks.” Adorably he blushed bright red, awkwardly excusing himself and hurrying away, a wide grin plastered to his face. Sarah watched him go, then headed in to her apartment, praying that there’s be enough hot water in the failing boiler to have the long hot bath she desperately wanted.  
Dean was waiting in the Impala when Sam slid in to the passenger side. A dirty grin on his face convincing his brother that he’d witnessed the kiss. “Sammy Boy! How’s the little lady doing, did you give her your famous puppy dog eyes? Chicks dig that sensitive thing you’ve got going on you know.”  
“Shut up jerk, she was just grateful that’s all.”  
“Yeah well I wish she was that grateful to me, she is cute.” Sam grinned, soft and warm “Yeah she is.”  
“Come on bitch, let’s get some shut-eye and then figure out what tried to make a meal of your girlfriend in the morning.” The Impala sped out of the apartment parking lot, Sam staring at the lit up square that was Sarah’s window in the rear view mirror until the last moment.

Sarah bent over the bathtub and left the hot tap running, heading into the tiny bedroom and slipping off her dirty and bloodstained waitressing uniform and sliding on some fluffy cartoon pyjamas. She was making herself a hot chocolate in her favourite mug when she noticed the noise from the bathroom pipes change in tone and pitch. Cursing her cheapskate landlord and his refusal to do any maintenance work she left her drink on the side and was about to make her way to the bathroom, when the lights began to flicker ominously. Heart jumping in her chest she reached for the salt cellar on the kitchen worktop and clasping it tightly in her hand she edged her way towards her tiny bathroom.  
Seconds later she was speeding out of the front door at top speed, running as fast as her legs could carry her.


	2. Chapter 2

6:00 the next morning.

Sam was panting heavily as he returned from his ritual morning run. Dean always preferred to sleep later, nut Sam relished the opportunity to explore new spaces and take the time to be alone with his thoughts. This morning his thoughts were mostly of the cute waitress him and Dean had saved the night before. Her smile, the impressive way she’d taken the news that the Supernatural existed and most of all the way her soft lips felt brushing against his cheek. The demon had disappeared for now, but Sam’s gut told him that the job wasn’t done, and he resolved to check up on Sarah the moment Dean was up and about . He slowed to a walk as he reached the motel carpark, passing the bay where the Impala was parked, before something made him hesitate and he turned back, slowly walking towards the vehicle. From the closer distance he could see the passenger door had been forced, and instinctively he reached for the small knife he kept on him at all times.

Silently he crept up to the door, and peered in, heart jumping at the sight that greeted him. Sarah was curled into a small ball on the passenger seat, eyes tight shut, trembling for all she was worth, incongruously she was dressed in fluffy pyjamas, and her bare feet were cut and dirty, She was clearly terrified and he was sure to make no sudden movements as he opened the door, and crouched down by her side.

“Sarah?” He kept his voice low, but there was no response from the terrified girl. Softly he reached out a hand to reach her shoulder. The effect was like an electric shock. Her eyes slammed open, and she snapped out a “No!” before scrabbling back in the seat trying to fight him off.

“It’s OK, Sarah, it’s just me, it’s Sam, You’re alright, you’re alright, I’ve got you.” The fight suddenly went from her as his voice reached through the panic, and without warning she threw her arms around his neck, sobbing her heart out. His arms reached round her embracing her, a note of caution in his voice as she suddenly went limp. “Sarah?” She was unresponsive, fear or exhaustion overtaking her system, and Sam carefully scooped her up, carrying her up the stairs to the Motel room he shared with his brother.

Dean was startled awake by the room door slamming open “Dude, what the hell?!” One look at the pyjama clad girl in his arms though and he was out of bed and by his brothers side. “What happened? Where’d you find her?” Sam sank down on the bed Sarah clasped tightly in his arms.

“She was in the Impala, I found her like this. Don’t know how long she’s been there or what happened to her, but she’s freezing.” He lay her down on the bed, reaching for a spare blanket and tucking it firmly around her “What do you mean you found her in the Impala?”

“I mean she was curled in a ball in the passenger side.” “You mean she broke one of Baby’s windows? I’ll kill her myself if she’s hurt my car.”

“No man, she broke in, popped the lock somehow I don’t know. Baby’s fine.” Dean studied her body, lifting one eyelid and lifting her wrist to take a pulse. “Well she’s breathing OK, and heartrates fine, I think she’s just exhausted.”

A moan from the prone figure on the bed captured the brother’s attention, and they both watched as her eyes peeled open, studying the unfamiliar ceiling for a moment before she sat bolt upright, scrambling back against the headboard. “Where am I?”

Sam held his hands out in reassurance. “You’re in our room, you’re safe now. What happened to you?” She was silent for a moment, before whispering so low that Dean and Sam had to strain to hear her. “It was in my flat.”

 

_Sarah edged her way to the bathroom trying to ignore the crippling fear racing through her gut. She reached for the light switch but as her fingers brushed the wall she hit something warm and sticky. Lifting her hand to her face she could just make out the gelatinous red liquid on her fingertips, and pushing open the door to the bathroom, a sight of pulse pounding terror met her eyes. The walls were bleeding, blood flowing down the tiles in rivulets and pouring out of the taps, filling the tub with gore. What was worse though was the figure floating face down in the tub, a figure with her coloured hair, wearing her pyjamas. Sarah screamed at the top of her lungs before turning and racing down the corridor to the front door. Desperately she tried to pull it open but it remained securely jammed, and behind her she could see the blood flowing from the bathroom down the corridor towards the spot where she desperately kicked the door in an attempt to escape. Inspiration struck and she remembered the salt cellar in her hand, and praying that it would work she threw the salt at the door lock, and tugged the handle, thanking God when it opened at last. She just had time to make it out onto the balcony before it slammed shut behind her, denying her access back in. She stood there, trying to suck in deep breaths of air, stave off the panic attack and attempted to formulate a plan of action. She knew that she had to get in touch with Sam and Dean, but her cell phone, all her money and the matchbox with Sam’s number were sealed in her haunted apartment. Of course! Sam’s number had been written on the back of a matchbook for a local motel. The brothers were from out of town, it made sense that they’d be crashing somewhere nearby._

_Dressed in just her fluffy pyjamas with no cash and bare feet there was no way she could walk there. Her eyes scanned the car park, landing on her apartment owner’s truck. Jogging over to it, she looked round for witnesses, before pulling a hairgrip from her untidy hair, straightening it out and beginning to pick the lock. Less than twenty minutes later she pulled up in the car park of the Motel. The dashboard clock told her it was almost half past 3 in the morning, and there was no sign of life anywhere, but regardless she sprinted across the forecourt hammering on the office door. The door opened a crack, showing the face of an old man, clearly woken from his bed._

_“What do you want?”_

_“Please Sir,” her voice was frantic, “I’m looking for some people who are staying here. They’re brothers, Sam and Dean something, I don’t know their surnames but I need to find them!”_

_“Sorry sweetie,” he’d replied, “we got no one by that name here.”_

_“Please, you must have.”_

_His face grew angry “I’m telling you there’s no Sam or Dean registered with us tonight, now get out before I call the cops!” He slammed the door in her face. She stood with her head resting against the door for a moment, beginning to panic again at the thought of not finding the brothers, if they weren’t here, she wouldn’t know where to begin looking, or if she’d make it to dawn before the demon found her. She was in danger of hyperventilating when she suddenly caught sight of a distinctive looking sleek black car with Kansas plates. Dean’s car._

_Almost drunkenly she stumbled over to the Impala, instinctively feeling that the car was as safe a haven as she would find tonight, quickly forced the lock with her hairpin, and tumbled inside, curling into the foetal position, closing her eyes and waiting for daylight._

 

“And then Sam found me” Sarah finished her story, wiping away the tears with the back of the hand that wasn’t clasped in Sam’s. She was still trembling as she looked up at the two brothers sat one each side of her on the narrow bed. She looked past the brothers sat either side of her on the narrow bed.

“You do believe me don’t you? I know it sounds like a bad B movie, bleeding walls and all, but I swear it’s true.”

“We believe you,” reassured Dean, “But where’d a nice girl like you learn to pick locks and hotwire trucks?”

Sarah gave him a watery smile. “My daddy taught me everything he knew about cars and engines, as for the lock picking thing? My boss tends to forget to leave me the keys to the liquor cabinet at work. I convinced some dumb bar fly to show me how to open most anything with a hairpin, then I practiced, figured it’d come in handy someday.” She took a deep breath, “So what are we going to do now?”

Dean stood, “Well I’m heading into town, going to buy some breakfast and see if we can get you a new outfit, can’t have you running round town in your PJs in broad daylight. Sammy here’s gonna stay with you, let you get a shower and get cleaned up. Then we’re going to take a look at your place.”

Sarah nodded, and Sam squeezed her hand in reassurance. “You go get a shower now, you’ll feel better after.”

Dean was right, after a long hot shower (and Sarah was kind of pissed that even this lousy motel had better hot water and water pressure than her place) she felt almost human again. She was just finishing up when Sam knocked on the door. “Sarah, is it OK if I slide in something for you to wear until Dean gets back?”

“Sure Sam.”

A few minutes later and Sam’s stomach flipped as she stepped out of the small bathroom, smiling shyly at him. Dressed in his smallest T-shirt and jogging bottoms, the clothes still drowned her, making her look even more small and delicate than she already was. Face newly cleaned and damp hair tied up in a loose ponytail he could see her too pale complexion and the dark circles of exhaustion under her eyes. He had no doubt that she had a core of solid steel though, her actions of the night before proving that. He dropped his eyes to focus on her bare toes, peeking out from the pooled layers of jogging bottom legs she’d done her best to roll up. In that moment a primal urge cam over Sam to protect this girl whatever it took, to keep her safe in his arms far away from the evils of the world. Sarah’s voice broke through his reverie.

“Hey Sam, you OK?”

He flushed pink “Yeah I’m fine.” He handed her a mug of steaming black liquid. “I made coffee.” Hungrily she reached out for the mug, taking a long gulp, before giving him the first real grin he’d seen from her, lighting up her face. “You’re an angel.”

He laughed nervously “I wouldn’t go that far, but I figure that a shower and a coffee is the best way to start solving most problems. “ She finished the coffee in one more long gulp, before setting the mug down, stepping closer to him, before wrapping her arms around him, burying her face in his rock hard broad chest. He brought his own arms up to wrap round her, resting his chin on the top of her head, smelling the scent of his shower gel that she’d clearly used mixed with her own personal unique smell.

She moved back in the circle of his arms to look up at him seriously. “I mean it Sam, I’d be dead if it wasn’t for you. You saved my life.” She looked away, embarrassed “My God that sounds corny.”

Sam gently brought a hand up to her jaw, turning her head to look at him. “Sarah look at me, I swear whatever happens, I’ll keep you safe.”

A moments pause as they looked into each other’s eyes and then he sank his mouth on to hers, nudging noses softly, before slipping his tongue into her mouth, gently exploring. Sarah moaned softly, leaning in to his questing kiss, filing the animalistic noise he made when she gently took his lip between her teeth and tugged for later. His arms tightened around her, and the pain, the fear, the exhaustion of the night before flew away from her till all she was aware of was the feeling of being totally safe in Sam’s arms, the feeling of his body pressed to hers, his lips on hers, the gentle tickle of his slightly shaggy hair.


	3. Chapter 3

“Who wants food?!”

Dean burst through the door, balancing a greasy paper bag, in one hand, and a carrier bag from a clothes store in town, and a cardboard takeout tray with three paper coffee mugs in the other. He stopped dead in his tracks, a grin on his face as he saw Sam and Sarah spring apart, each slightly out of breath and blushing.

 “Am I interrupting something? “He chuckled as both Sam and Sarah avoided his eye. “I got breakfast, and I got some new threads for you.”

Breakfast was a quiet affair, all of them bust focussing on their food, until Sarah asked a question that had been bothering her for a while. “ So what were you guys doing in town anyway, before running into red eyes last night?"

Dean took over the story “We got wind of weird stuff going down in town, a lot of cattle mutilations around, dogs and cats going missing, have you heard anything about it?”

Sarah nodded. “People in the bar talk. The Police said it was probably just kids though. You know just cruising for laughs, but there’s been no more problems with that sort of thing for a few months now. The little sadists must have got bored”

She noted the serious look on Deans and Sam’s faces. “What is it?” “We think the animals stopped going missing, because whoever was hurting them moved on to bigger game. People have been disappearing in this town. Especially over the last few months, A lot of people, mostly young, almost all girls, exclusively on their own, no family, not many friends. No one to miss them.”

Sarah frowned, “It’s a dump of a town, people come in, stay for a while then realise it’s a hole and move on. Happens all the time, it doesn’t mean anything bad has happened to them.”

Sam reached over to her, covering her hand with his own. “Sarah think, in the last few months how many waitresses have worked at the Bar then quit?”

“Three or four, it’s hard to get good help, Gary said they’d told him they were heading for the big city.”

“And how many of them have you heard from since, how many returned their uniform before they left, or stopped at the bar for a farewell drink?”

Sarah remained silent, as Dean carried on. “I’m sorry to have to scare you like this, but something evil is taking these girls and Sam and me, we have to find out what it is and stop the son of a bitch who’s summoning it before anyone else goes missing.”

“You mean before I go missing?”

“Not going to happen, not now you’ve got us to look out for you.”

Dean pushed his chair back, and handed her the bag of clothes. “Get changed, and we’ll head over to your place, see if we can see what made it go all Amityville Horror on you.”

The clothes Dean had picked out for her, were simple and functional. Blue jeans, tank top, warm hoodie and trainers, and he’d thoughtfully provided clean underwear in simple functional white as well. Sarah tried not to dwell on how he’d so accurately measured her size by eye, as all the clothes fit her almost perfectly.

Sitting in the back seat of the Impala on the way back to her flat, Sarah tried desperately not to let her raising nerves show, regressing to old childhood habits of picking her nails to distract herself. Sam was busy flicking through the same old beaten notebook he’d had at the bar, and him and Dean were bouncing ideas off each other, trying to remember if they’d come across anything similar before.

“Almost there sweetheart.” Dean called, turning the corner to the street where she lived. “What the damn hell…”

The street was crowded with people, stopping and looking at the site of Sarah’s building. Or more precisely where Sarah’s building should have been. Instead there was a still smouldering charred ruin of a shell. Two fire trucks were still parked in the street outside hosing down the still smoking wreckage. The Impala had barely stopped before Sarah threw herself out of the door, pushing through the small crowd of onlookers and ducking under the police barrier.

“That’s my flat, oh god, everything I have’s in there!”

A fireman caught her in her flight , preventing her from going any further. “I’m sorry Miss you can’t go in there, there’s nothing left. I’m sorry.”

She would have collapsed to the pavement were it not for the arms that caught her from behind, spinning her round into a comforting hug. Sam, held her tight to his chest, while Dean addressed the fireman, “I’m sorry officer, we’re friends of Sarah’s, this is a terrible shock for her. When did this happen?”

“Bout three thirty this morning. Seems it started in apartment 20, then spread, place went up like a candle, ain’t seen nothing like it in all my years, by the time we got here, there was nothing left to save. Lucky there ain’t many living there these days, neighbours managed to get out.”

“Any idea what caused it?”

The fireman shrugged. “Probably electrical, the place was a death trap anyway. Weird thing is it looks like the fire started in the bathroom.”

Sarah raised her head from Sam’s chest. “But that’s my apartment, I should have been there.” “Well miss looks like you had a lucky escape, ain’t no one could have survived in there, place burnt hotter than hell, melted the beams themselves.

Dean extended a hand to the man, “Thanks officer.”

“No problem son, you going to be alright miss?”

“We’ll look after her, don’t worry.”

Together him and Sam guided Sarah to the Impala, parked down the street. Dean got in the driver’s side, but Sam followed Sarah into the back, keeping a comforting arm around her shoulders. “How are you holding up?”

Sarah was quiet for a moment, “What time is it?”

Dean checked his watch “Just after 11, why?”

“I have to call work my shifts supposed to start in an hour.”

Dean raised his eyebrows in surprise. “You’re going back there? After what happened last night?”

She glared at him, defiance in her eyes. “What else can I do Dean? I’ve got no money, no flat, not even the clothes on my back are mine. Since mum and dad died I’ve had to make my own way, I can’t afford to be unemployed right now. So yeah, I’m gonna ring work, get a week off to sort stuff out, and then carry on.”

Sam’s concern was clear in his eyes “It’s not safe, your work, your flat, this things gunning for you.”

She looked up at him, raising a hand to his face. “You said you’d keep me safe, and I believe you, so I’m going to help you find whatever it is that’s after me, and then I’m going to help you take it down.” She held her hand out for Dean’s cell phone. “I have to make a call.”

Dean and Sam watched her pace up and down the patch of sidewalk outside the Impala as she made her call. “So Sammy boy, you’ve got it bad this time haven’t you?” Dean grinned.

“Shut up Jerk, I don’t know, this girls special. I’ve not felt like this about anyone since Jessica.”

“Yeah well, someone else clearly thinks she’s special too. And we’ve gotta figure out who the son of a bitch is.”

Sarah opened the door and slid in to the rear seat. “I’ve two days. So what’s the plan?”

“Two days?” Sam repeated incredulously “I thought you asked for a week?”

Sarah huffed out a sigh, rubbing her tired eyes. “I asked for a week, Gary said I had two days to get sorted and get back to work or he’ll find someone else to fill my shifts. So we better get a move on.”

Dean smiled at her, secretly impressed at her proactive attitude  “I’m going to do some scouting around town, see if anyone remembers anything about the missing girls. He opened his wallet and handed over a credit card to Sammy. “You ladies can go shopping, you’ll need a few bits if you’re bunking with us for the time being.”

“Excuse me?”

“We need to keep an eye on you, and you need somewhere to crash. Unless you feel like camping out in Baby again?”

Sarah leaned over the front seat, wrapping her arms around Deans neck and planting a kiss on his cheek. “I knew you were a softie really.”

Gruffly Dean disentangled her, “Yeah well, no chick flick moments, get going, I’ll see you girls back at the motel later.”

Sam held the door for her as they both exited the car, and Dean pulled away. “First stop’s a diner.” Sam told her. “If I’m going shopping I need to build up my strength.”

A short while later and they were sat opposite each other in a booth at Sarah’s favourite diner in the town centre, burgers, fries and milkshakes between them. Conversation flowed freely between them, Sarah talking about the town and it’s local characters, what it was like working in the bar, and Sam in return talked a little about being what he called a “Hunter”, travelling the country, killing demons and laying spirits to rest.

“So this is just another day at the office for you then?” she asked.

“I wouldn’t say that exactly, but it’s far from the weirdest thing we’ve ever chased.” He held the door open for her as they left the diner, “What do you need to buy?”

“Just the basics, socks, underwear, some changes of tops. Oh and some shower gel of my own. I had to use yours this morning, and I smell like a boy.”

Sam couldn’t resist. He snaked an arm around her waist, pulling her to him and lowering his head to kiss her softly. “I think you smell gorgeous, good enough to eat.” He nibbled along her jaw.

Sarah beamed at him, pushing him way slightly, both embarrassed at the very public display of affection, but also turned on beyond belief. “Come on Romeo, let’s go splash the cash.”

Sarah headed straight for the towns department store, and for the next half hour Sam followed her around as she roamed the aisles, picking out a few cute T-shirts, socks, spare pair of jeans, and another hoodie, all in brighter colours than he would have expected. Sam halted as she led him towards the women’s lingerie section. Sarah turned to look inquisitively at him, grinning as she noted the slight blush on his awkward looking face. “What’s the matter Sam? Scared of a few pairs of pants?” She took pity on him. “You wait here, I’ll only be a minute.” True to her word she was only a very short time away before she dropped a multipack of cotton briefs and a functional looking T-shirt bra on the pile of clothes in the trolley. “Do you need anything else?”

“Just some toiletries and I’m done.”

Standing at the counter as the cashier tallied up the total spend her bravado dropped as she watched the total rise. “Are you sure Dean doesn’t mind me spending his money like this?” Sam tried to think of a polite way of telling her that the credit card was stolen anyway, choosing to answer “Course not, he wouldn’t have offered otherwise.”

Dean was waiting for them, when they returned to the motel room, papers laid out across the kitchenette table. “Afternoon ladies.” They both ignored the jab, Sam striding over to examine the paperwork. “So what did you find out?”

“Apparently no one really remembers the girls who went missing, loners mostly, weren’t here too long before doing the moonlight flit. Did some background checks though and it turns out that when I say they disappeared they went up in a puff of smoke, they’d be here, and then gone, no notice on their rooms, not one left a forwarding address for mail. They just disappeared.”

Sam turned slowly to Sarah “Didn’t you say that your boss said that they’d told him they were leaving?”

She nodded. “Yeah, said they’d left a message on the machines, happens all the time in a job like that.”

“Did you ever hear one of their messages?”

“No I didn’t, Gary clears the recordings every day. He’d just tell me how many extra shifts I had to work to make up.” She paled, sitting down heavily on the small sofa. “You don’t think Gary had anything to do with this do you? I mean he’s a bastard to work for , but killing people? Summoning demons?”

“We don’t anything for certain yet, but I think we should investigate Gary a little more. We can check out the bar tomorrow when it’s closed. Catching sight of the distressed look on Sarah’s face Dean changed tack addressing his brother. “What do we know about the bar itself? Anything in its history?”

“It’s about the oldest building in town, been a bar for about 100 years,  started as a saloon and hotel for the stagecoaches. Nothing specific cropped up in my research about any big events, it’s just old.”

Sam reached for the journal, flipping the pages, “Do you have any idea what he’s summoning?”

“Not yet, but look at the pictures of the missing girls.” He spread out a series of photo’s on the table.

“FBI agent paid a visit to the local cop shop today and got copies of the driving licences.” Sam drew in a breath as he looked at the faces. All were female, dark haired, petite, all of them drew a striking resemblance to Sarah. Dean tapped the top image

“Looks like we’re dealing with a demon with very specific tastes. I think we should check out the bar again, see if we can have a chat with our friendly neighbourhood landlord.” He turned to speak to Sarah “I don’t think you should be anywhere near that place for the moment though.” His expression softened at the site of her. She was curled up in the corner of the sofa, fast asleep, snoring gently. “Little princess had a long day.”

Sam passed him, pulling a blanket off the bed and gently tucking it round her. “Shut up man, she’s been through a lot in the last twenty four hours.”

“I know dude. You stay with Sleeping Beauty here, see if you can use that college education to figure out how we kill this thing. I’m going to get a drink.”


	4. Chapter 4

Sarah shot upright from her position on the couch with a short sharp scream, breathing heavily. For a second she had no clue where she was, the room was dimly lit by a single lamp on the table. “Sarah, sssh it’s alright, it was just a nightmare.” Sam’s voice grounded her, his strong hands gripping her arms, forcing her to focus on him. “Look at me darling, breath with me, in and out, in and out.” With difficulty she followed his lead, gaining control of her panicked breaths. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders he could feel her trembling against him. “Hey, it’s OK, it was just a nightmare.” He whispered into her hair.   
Eventually she calmed, pulling away from him and scrubbing at her eyes. “I’m sorry Sam, it was just a bad dream. I didn’t mean to wake you up.”  
He brushed away a lock of sweaty hair from her face. “You didn’t. I’ve been researching, was just finishing up actually”  
“What time is it?”  
“Late. Deans not back yet, but I’m going to hit the sack. Are you going to be OK?”  
Shakily she nodded.  
He made sure to change into his sleepwear in the bathroom, rinsing his face and brushing his teeth, but when he came back into the main room, Sarah was still wide awake, half caught in the remnants of her nightmare. He looked down at her awkwardly, wondering how best to phrase his next sentence.   
“That couch can’t be very comfy, you could share with me if you’d like. I mean you don’t have to, I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or anything…”   
He needn’t have worried. Sarah was off the sofa and into his arms before he could process the movement.  
“Thank you.”  
“No problems. You can wear my T-shirt and pants from this morning to sleep in.”   
Emerging from the bathroom Sarah shyly stood by the side of the bed, looking down at where Sam already lay. “Are you sure this is alright, it’s not a big bed, and I don’t want to put you out.”  
Sam stretched out his arms to her, and she climbed in next to him, the heat from his body warming her chilled skin almost immediately. Shyly she faced away from him, trying to out some distance between them in the narrow space, but he pulled her closer to him, one arm wrapped round her waist, anchoring her with her back to his firm chest, and she fell asleep to the warm weight of him at her back, his chin buried in her hair, and his breaths soft in her ear.  
Dean returned from the bar a short while later, grinning at the sight that greeted him. Sam was lying in his narrow single bed, with a sound asleep Sarah curled tightly into his arms, her face buried in his chest. His brother was awake staring down at the sleeping girl, gently carding his fingers through her dark hair.   
“Sammy, you dog!” he whispered.  
“Shut up jerk! Nothing happened she just had a nightmare is all, keep your voice down she’s only just settled.”   
Sarah mumbled in her sleep and resettled herself against Sam, and Sam ran a comforting hand down her back,.   
Dean raised an eyebrow at the tender gesture but chose not to make comment. “Your research turn up anything?”

Sam shook his head, “The bars old, oldest building in town apparently, started off as a stagecoach hotel in the late 1800’s. As for Gary I can’t find anything out of the ordinary at all. You turn up anything?”  
Dean flashed a stack of banknotes at him “Apart from the fact that no one round here plays pool worth a damn? Not really. Gary’s a long term local, runs a tight ship in his bar. Got a bit of a rep for being hard on his staff which explains no one questioning him going through so many waitresses. Spoke to an older guy though, he reckons a load of girls disappeared too when he was a young man, bout thirty years ago now. We should do some digging through the old papers, see if we can find anything from then.” He shrugged out of his jacket, bending to undo his boots and dropped to his bed with a yawn. “I’m bushed, we’ll check out the bar in the morning.” Rolling over he switched off the one remaining lamp, plunging the room into darkness. Within seconds he was snoring, and Sam adjusted his grip on Sarah, and soon followed his brother into slumber.  
She woke up late the next morning, sun already streaming through the motel window. Luxuriously she stretched, her arms and legs meeting only empty sheets, with none of Sam’s furnace like warmth remaining. Sitting up she blinked the sleep out of her eyes, and focussed on the two brothers, sat at the kitchen table. Sam was at his computer again, brows furrowed in concentration as he read, while Dean had his feet up on the bench, chewing on what looked like a greasy breakfast with his mouth open.   
He greeted Sarah with a grin through his mouthful of food. “Good morning sunshine.” Sarah pushed the covers off and padded over to the small kitchenette, brushing a hand against Sam’s as she passed him on the way to the coffee machine. Pouring herself a large mug she sat down at Sam’s side,   
“What did I miss?”   
Sam closed the lid of the laptop with a click, “Not much, Deans going to check out the bar this morning. We should probably head back to your apartment, see if we can find anything.”  
Sarah looked over at Dean. “You remember the bars closed during the day right? Won’t be open till six tonight.”   
He just gave her a grin full of mischief. “Well it’ll make it easier for me to have a good look around in private then.”  
Shaking her head she jumped off the stool and headed for the bathroom. By the time she had finished her shower and dressed in new clothes from the day before Dean had gone, and she heard the distinctive roar of the Impalas engine leaving the car park. “Is he going to be OK?”  
“Don’t worry about Dean, he’s done this sort of thing before, never been caught yet.” He reached out with a long arm and caught Sarah’s arm, pulling her till she was standing between his muscled legs where he sat on the stool. He raised a hand and ran the back of his fingers down her cheek, his eyes full of concern “Did you get much sleep last night, it was a hell of a nightmare you had.”   
She took his hand, raising it to her mouth to softly kiss his knuckles. “I had the best night’s sleep I’ve had in a long while. I think it was the company.”  
Sam laughed at her “So I get a stunning girl like you in my bed and she says I help her sleep? Dean would say I’m doing something wrong!”  
She shot him her best flirty look. “Well one of these days you should show me what you’ve really got.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here be the Smut!

Without warning Sam tightened his grip around her waist, and a downright predatory look flashed over his eyes. A moments pause, like the calm before a storm and he picked her bodily up in his arms, mouth sinking down on hers in a fierce claiming biting kiss. Instinctively Sarah locked her slender legs round his waist, returning each bite and lick with equal fervour. One hand reached up to tangle in his think hair, the other holding on to his back for dear life as he bucked up into her most sensitive spots.   
She gasped as his mouth left hers to tease her neck, planting biting kisses down her collarbone, and she fumbled at the hem of his T-shirt before he let go of her momentarily to help her lift it over his head. Sarah had a split second to admire his Adonis like chiselled abs, before he was tugging her own tank top up over her head, expertly reaching behind her to undo the clasp on her bra even as his mouth sealed back over hers, expertly plundering her mouth with his tongue.  
In her lust filled haze she didn’t really register Sam picking her up, legs still locked round him until she was unceremoniously thrown onto the bed, landing on her back and letting out a whoosh of air at the impact. She bit her lip as Sam crawled up her body, licking and kissing a wet trail up her torso. She flung back her her head and moaned filthily as his tongue traced a tortuously slow path up her body, tracing around her belly button, before light kisses teased up her rib cage and between her breasts. She closed her eyes at the sensation of his hands and mouth, before slamming them open, her mouth a silent O of pleasure as he took one rosy nipple into his mouth and sucked. “Oh God Sam!” she cried out. He looked up her chest a filthy grin on his face, as he slid an arm around her waist before returning to lave the other nipple with his sinful mouth, his spare hand reaching to cover the other breast, the callouses on his hands causing amazing friction on her sensitive nipples.  
“Sam, please,” she breathed “Please please.” His voice was a low growl sending sparks through her belly “Please what?” Sarah was too far gone in a lust haze to even be self-conscious at the begging tone in her voice. “I need you to touch me, right now, or I swear I’ll explode.”  
“Whatever the lady wants.” Desperately she reached down to his jeans, fumbling for the belt, but he took both her hands on one of his and lifted them above her head, pinning them easily to the bed. “Don’t be impatient baby,” he scolded her, peppering his words with kisses to her lips, chin, nose. “I want to take my time unwrapping this present.” One large hand slid down her body, covering the junction of her thighs still clad in jeans. With one last firm kiss to her mouth he sat up, staring down at her body with intense concentration. Sarah felt the button on her jeans pop and cold air hit her fevered body as Sam pulled her jeans off, kissing every inch of exposed skin as he went, leaving her just in her cotton panties, dark and soaked with the evidence of her arousal.  
Sam heaved himself to his feet for a moment, his jeans dropping to the floor and from her angle on the bed Sarah had an overwhelming view of the scale of the man standing before her. Tall and muscular, no doubt from years of exercise hunting. Almost naked in front of this mountain of a man, Sarah felt suddenly vulnerable, but it passed in a moment as Sam looked down at her, breathing “You are so gorgeous.” He pounced, the weight of his body suddenly pressing her into the mattress, tongues fighting for dominance in a fierce kiss, one hand buried in her hair, holding her in place for him, his impressive erection pressing into her most sensitive area through their underwear.  
She was whimpering under his ministrations and he pulled his mouth away from hers to whisper in her ear.   
“Don’t worry baby, you’ll get what you want, but I want to make you scream first.   
He sat upright, kneeling over her, and gently tugged at the soaked girl boxers covering what remained of her modesty, leaving her totally naked and exposed to his lustful eyes. Her hips bucked upwards as he drew a forefinger through her folds. “Look at you” he breathed “All pink and wet for me.” Sarah ground her thighs together, seeking the friction she craved, but Sam place a large hand on each thigh and separated her legs, placing a knee over each of her broad shoulders, and giving her a filthy look. “Let’s see if you taste as sweet as you look.”   
The first touch of his tongue against her clit was like an electric shock, and Sam held her thighs firmly to the bed, allowing his tongue to continue exploring her most intimate area. Sarah moaned and writhed on the bed as Sam teased her with his tongue, lapping at her clit, before delving deep inside, a tight coil of desire spooling tighter and tighter in the depths of her stomach. She was hardly aware of her own voice begging for release. “Please Sam, please, I need to come, oh god please, Sam don’t stop…” Without warning he flicked his tongue hard against her throbbing clit and shoved two fingers deep inside her, crooking them to brush against her G spot and Sarah’s back arched like a bow as she came harder than she had ever before, vision whiting out as she screamed his name. Sam coaxed her through it, and she must have blacked out for a moment as when she opened her eyes again Sam was leaning above her, a grin on his face like the cat who got the cream her juices still wet on his chin.   
He kissed her deep and dirty, and for a fleeting moment Sarah could taste herself on him. Sam reached to the bedside cabinet and sat back on his heels, shedding his own briefs and rolling on a condom. He crawled back up her like a predatory animal, tipping her head back and biting at the neck. She was aware of the burning heat of his crock branding her thigh, then the breath left her body as he entered her in one smooth slide. His impressive cock stretched even her well prepared passage, and Sam stilled for a moment, giving them both time to enjoy being so intimately connected. She was hot and tight around him, taking his cock in a velvety grip, and he had to exercise every ounce of self-control to stop from coming on the spot. Slowly at first he began to move, pulling out of her, before pushing back in judging from her whimpers and moans the angles that drove her wild. Sarah was lost in a maelstrom of pleasure, all the fear and pain of the last few days dropping away in the hurricane of physical sensation.   
Sam slammed in to her, harder and faster, till his hips began to stutter losing rhythm, and his choked voice reached her “I’m close honey, and I want you to come with me.” He reached between their bodies and brushed her clit with his thumb, and Sarah was finished, screaming out her pleasure, her inner walls fluttering around Sam’s cock as he followed her over the edge with an animalistic groan.  
They lay there for a few seconds breathing heavily together before Sam regretfully pulled out, disposing of the condom before taking Sarah into his arms and kissing her gently. “You are amazing.” She slapped a weak hand against his sweat glistening chest “Not so bad yourself”  
They lay tangled together in the sheets for a little while longer, dozing, Sarah lulled by the steady beat of Sam’s heart, Sam rubbing idle circles on her back. She looked up at him sleepily. “Can’t we just stay here forever.”   
He laughed, “Nothing I want more, but I don’t think Dean’d be happy to come back and find us like this.”   
Regretfully she rolled away from him, stretching before sliding out of bed. “I’m going to need another shower.” She sashayed over to the bathroom door, before looking over her shoulder at him. “Care to join me?”


	6. Chapter 6

Just as Sarah said the bar car park was deserted when Dean pulled in, the place securely shut up, and after checking up and down the street for witnesses he quietly sipped round the back of the building, hugging the shadows by the wall till he reached the small square window to the office that him and Sam had gained entry to the building through the first night.  
There seemed to be no one in the room, no shadows moving, and he pulled out his penknife and slid it under the frame, undoing the latch, and sliding the glass open a fraction, listening for any signs of life. Deciding the coast was clear he pushed the window open the rest of the way before heaving himself through the space and rolling into the cramped office, silently re closing the window behind him.  
There seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary. Files full of invoices, an aging PC on the desk, cheap furniture and the smell of stale cigarettes and old booze, one mouldering old couch and a door to what looked like a broom closet. He was just about to leave again when there was motion in the passage outside, and looking round for a hiding spot he slid into the broom closet, pulling the door behind him as the office door opened as Gary stepped inside.  
Dean watched through the crack in the door as he opened the safe in the wall, putting in a roll of banknotes and removing what looked to be a small wooden chest. Sitting down at his desk he opened it, pulling out some sort of red crystal and muttering what sounded to Deans straining ears like an incantation. The crystal lit up with a blinding light, and Gary spoke to it, though if he was in conversation with something only he could hear what it said.   
“I know, I’m sorry, but there’s been a complication. No, I swear, you’ll get your offering, you just need to be patient, just give me one more day that’s all. Tonight I promise I’ll fulfil my side of the bargain.”   
With a worried look on his face he placed the now dull crystal back in the chest, snapped the lid closed and carrying the chest under his arm he stalked out of the office, slamming the door behind him and locking it.  
Dean waited a minute to be sure the coast was clear before emerging from his concealment, head spinning as he tried to process the information he’d just overheard. The safe was a no go area, but picking up the letter opener on the desk he expertly slid it along the top of the drawers, popping each one open. They were mostly full of junk, old candy wrappers and receipts, but it was the last drawer that was interesting. A very old photo album and a slim brown envelope were revealed to him and Dean flipped through the album first. It was mostly full of old photos of the bar, ranging back to the late 1800’s. “What the hell?” Putting it to one side he slid the contents of the envelope out onto the desk, eyes widening as he took in the contents, before shoving the envelope, its contents and the photo album in his pocket and bolting out of the window for the Impala.


	7. Chapter 7

Sam gave Sarah’s shoulders a gentle squeeze as they regarded the site of her former home. The place was a dripping ruin, still cordoned off, but after explaining to the bored looking cop who she was, they were allowed past the cordon, picking their way over the ashes to where her apartment had once been. Pieces of charred furniture were still recognisable, and Sarah kicked the detritus aimlessly, looking for anything salvageable. In the grey muck she spotted something familiar and she bent down, clearing away the mess to pick up a smashed and broken photo frame.  
Sam spotted her discovery, and came over from where he had been examining the site of the bathroom, wrapping his arms around her middle and staring over her shoulder. “What is it?”  
Sarah shook the broken glass out of the broken frame gently ran a finger over the photo beneath. It was damp and slightly charred at the edges, but the faces of the subjects were still recognisable, a smiling couple, on a beach somewhere, clearly very much in love and smiling at the camera with wide innocent grins. “Mum and Dad.” She whispered sadly,  
“Last holiday we had together. Two days later we were on the way home when the accident happened.”  
The building gave an alarming creak around them. “Come on sweetie,” Sam dropped her waist and tugged at her hand. “We should get out of here. Let’s get some food.”

Sam slid a plate of food in front of where Sarah sat in the diner booth, staring at the charred photo, completely silent and lost in her own world. He regarded her for a moment, before reaching into his wallet and pulling out a photo of his own, sliding it across the table to her. She stared at it, trying to divine its meaning. A young family, the woman a beautiful blonde holding a baby only a few months old, a smiling man with a toddler on his shoulders, all grinning at the camera.  
She looked at him questioningly. “That’s the only photo I have of me and my family all together.”  
“What happened?”  
“My mum died in a fire when I was six months old, my dad passed last year. It’s just me and my brother now.”   
She gave him a slightly wavering smile. “Orphans together hey.”   
He nodded, “Yep, so we’ve got to look out for each other.” They both tucked their respective family portraits safely away in pockets before beginning their food. “I checked out your bathroom for EMF readings, the thing lit up like Christmas, whatever this thing is it was there alright, and that fireman was right, the blaze did start in the bathroom.”  
“So what’s next?” asked Sarah, pushing her empty plate away. "How do we find it and stop it.”   
Sam checked his watch. “We’re due to meet Dean back at the motel in half an hour, we should start heading back, see what he found at the bar.”   
“OK. I just need to use the ladies room first.”  
She got up and headed towards the bathroom at the rear of the building, while Sam signalled the waitress to settle the bill. He was just pocketing his change when his cell rang, the caller display flashing his brother’s name. “Hey man.”  
“Sammy, is Sarah with you?”  
“Yeah we’re in the diner, just getting some lunch, you want me to get you anything?”  
“Sammy it’s Gary alright, I found him talking to a crystal thing in the office, looks like it was some sort of demonic phone or something, he’s planning on sacrificing Sarah. Tonight. We’ve got to get her somewhere safe and stop the crazy son of a bitch. There’s more, but I’ll show you when when you back to the motel, just keep your eyes on that girl.”  
Sam hung up the phone, and sped over the door to the ladies room, it was locked, but he banged on it, ignoring the strange looks from the other diner guests.  
“Sarah, you OK in there?” No answer. He banged again. “Sarah?!”   
A waitress was pulling at his arm. “I’m sorry, do we have a problem here?”   
Sam thought fast. “Um yeah, it’s my girlfriend, she was feeling dizzy and went to the ladies room, I think she’s fainted in there.”  
Doubtfully the waitress looked at him. “Please I need to see if she’s OK, she forget her medication this morning and could have collapsed.” The look of concern in Sam’s eyes must have convinced the women, even if the excuse was phony, and she pulled out a master key, sliding it into the lock and undoing the bolt from the outside. The door swung open and Sam bolted inside.   
The bathroom was completely empty, the window wide open, letting in the breeze. He pounced on a colourful scrap of paper by the sink, recognising immediately with a sinking heart the photo of Sarah’s parents. The waitress was waiting impatiently. “Looks like your date ran out on you Romeo. Tell her not to bother coming back either, I got enough to do without people messing round with bathroom locks.” She left, leaving Sam standing in the tiny bathroom, over the smell of bathroom cleaner he caught the distinct whiff of chloroform. Pocketing the photo he jumped out the window, following the path Sarah must have taken, but there was no sign of her around the back of the diner. Jogging round to the front he frantically scanned the street, but there was no clue to her whereabouts there either. Instinctively he pulled out his cell phone, dialling his brother.  
“Sammy?”  
He tried to keep the panic out of his voice “Dean, she’s gone, disappeared like the others.”   
“What, I thought you were with her?”   
“Dude, I swear she just went to the bathroom, but I could smell chloroform and the windows was open. I think he took her.”  
“Alright, calm down Sammy, we’ll find her. Go back inside and I’ll meet you there.”   
Barely minutes later Dean entered the diner, hurrying into the booth where Sam sat, an unfamiliar photo clasped in his slightly shaking hands. He looked up at his big brother. “I promised her I’d keep her safe Dean, I promised her. I let down Jess, and now I’ve let Sarah down too, it’s like I’m cursed.”   
“Snap out of it Sam. We’re not going to lose her. Not today, not as long as we work together. What did you find at the apartment?”  
“EMF readings were off the chart, something came looking for her alright. What did you find at the bar?"   
Dean reached in his pocket for the photo album and envelope, spreading the envelopes contents across the diner table. “Get a look at those.” Sam looked at the series of photographs that Dean displayed, each was of one of the missing girls, and each had weird symbols covering their faces, looking very much like they had been written in blood. “Dean, what is this?”   
“Check the last photo.” Sam flipped through to the last image. Sarah’s smiling face beamed out at him, the picture distorted by the bloody symbols covering the glossy paper. He looked at Dean, his mind whirring, "These look like targeting symbols, but what’s in it for Gary. Why’d he want these girls dead?”   
Dean pushed the photo album across to him. The first page showed the bar in its current form, Sam recognising the picture as one that hung behind the bar. Gary was standing behind the pumps, the next image was older, maybe sometime in the 1980’s, judging by the fashions and hairstyles depicted, but front and centre stood Gary, but not the young boy he should have been at that time, exactly the way he was today.   
“That’s weird.” Sam pointed out.   
“That’s nothing, keep going.” Sam flicked through the images, each page depicting the bar a little further back in time, and each time showing a man looking identical to Gary, dressed in period correct clothes and hair. The images went all the way back to the bars construction, showing a Frontier Era Gary supervising the erection of a wooden sign bearing the saloons name.  
Dean reached over and flipped the book closed. “I think our friend Gary has been sacrificing girls for a long time, to extend his own lifespan. Those girls who went missing all those years ago? I did some digging around town and all of them worked at the bar, and none of them had any local ties, any family, anyone to miss ‘em when they went. People just took Gary’s word that they’d moved on to the big smoke.”  
“So what, you’re thinking that Gary finds the girls that no one’ll miss, and gives them a job at his place. Then he takes their photos does some hoodoo on them so the Demon knows who they are and how to track them and in return the demon gives him extra time?”   
“That’s what I’m thinking. What if he only has to do it every thirty years or so? Gives him the girls in return for a few extra decades, then lies low till he needs to extend his time again.”  
“But Dean, wouldn’t anyone notice if Gary never aged?”   
“Not necessarily.” He unfolded a piece of paper and laid it on the table. “Coroners reports for various owners of the bar. Gary lets himself age a bit, then fakes his own death somehow, does the deal with the Demon and comes back posing as a close relative, maybe a son or nephew. Carries on his supposed father’s footsteps.”  
“But this time something went wrong” Sam theorised, “The Demon was summoned to the bar to kill Sarah alright, but we stopped it. It tried again at her flat, but she was too smart, used the salt to escape. That’s my clever girl.”  
“But he’s going to call that thing tonight, I heard him.”  
“How do we find him?”  
“We need to find out where around here a monster could live.”


	8. Chapter 8

Sarah groaned slightly as consciousness returned slowly, and she blinked up at an unfamiliar ceiling. Her head was pounding and she reached up a hand to cover her eyes, finding with a start, that she couldn’t move either of her hands. Slowly he vision cleared and looking to her left and right she could see that she was bound to a wooden table top, thick rough rope binding her wrist and ankles to the surface, a thick band of rope around her middle, effectively preventing her from any sort of movement. Trying to shout for help she quickly discovered that she was almost entirely silenced by the knotted fabric in her mouth and securely fastened behind her head. Panic overtook her and she teetered on the edge of hyperventilating, gaining a tight hold on her emotions and regulating her breathing through supreme force of will.

Looking round at the room she was in she tried to make sense of her surroundings. It was clearly an old building, maybe a cabin? The walls and floor were of aging wood beams, and the furniture, what little there was apart from her surprisingly sturdy table was decrepit and falling apart. It was freezing cold and a cruel breeze blew through the draughty space, which was lit only by the moonlight shining through the windows and by the dim glow of a few sparsely located oil lamps. Closing her eyes she tried to piece together the sequence of events that led to her waking here, alone and terrified.

_Sarah turned the tap on, washing her hands before cooping a palm full of the icy water and rinsing her face. The conversation with Sam over their joint status as orphans had been emotionally draining, and she felt dirty from wading through Reaching blindly for a paper towel she rubbed the water from her eyes, checking her reflection in the mirror. To her horror the mirror showed a man in a balaclava standing right behind her, but before she could turn or even open her mouth to scream for help a damp rag was forced over her mouth and nose, and an arm wrapped round her middle, securing her arms to her side. She flailed desperately as her vision blurred, but within seconds she slumped back into her assailants arms. Throwing her over one shoulder the masked man exited the room through the window, just as Sam first knocked on the door. There was a car parked immediately outside, concealed behind a dumpster, and within seconds he had deposited Sarah into the trunk, jumped into the driver’s seat and pulled out onto the street, disappearing into the anonymous lines of traffic._

A sudden noise broke her from her reverie and she twisted her head as far as she could as there came the sound of a key in a lock, and she watched fearfully as the door swung open, revealing the masked figure of her attacker, holding a camping lantern high. He locked the door behind him, before beginning to potter around the tiny cabin, lighting more candles and turning up the flames on the oil lamps, bathing the room in their flickering glow. Apparently satisfied with the level of illumination he approached the table where Sarah lay bound, staring up at him in terror. He reached down to her, touching the knotted cloth around her mouth.

“If I take this off, you have to promise not to scream, OK? No one’s round here to hear you anyway, but it’d be easier if you were a good girl and were quiet for me. Do you understand?”

She nodded, doing her best not to flinch away as he leant over her to pick apart the knot securing the fabric at the back of her head. She coughed as the musty fabric pulled from her mouth, staring up at the man who was looking down at her.

“Who are you? What are you going to do to me?”

The man reached up, removing his balaclava and he smiled a smile at Sarah that froze her blood to the core.

“Gary?”

“Hello Sarah.”

She stared at him, anger and fury meeting with the fear in her eyes. “Dean was right, it is you that killed those other girls.”

“I didn’t kill anyone Sarah.”

“No but you summoned the Demon that did you crazy bastard.”

He had the good grace to look awkward, avoiding her eyes. “I made a deal, a long time ago now, someone came to me, and offered me long life and my bar good fortune, and all he asked in return was an offering.”

“But people Gary! They’re not offerings they’re people. How many innocent girls have you sacrificed to this monster? “Five girls, every 30 years that’s all, and I picked carefully, they were all lonely, had no family left, no friends, I made that no one would be left hurting and missing them.”

“What like no one’s going to miss me you mean?”

“I did my research Sarah, I know you’re an orphan, no home to speak of, keep yourself to yourself, it’s nothing personal I promise, but it has to be this way.” He reached down to cup her face in a mockery of a tender caress.

“You’re wrong you know,” she spat at him, shaking her head.

“Wrong about what?”

“Sam’s going to be missing me. He and his brother are going to hunt you down, and they’re going to stop you.”

Anger flashed across his features. “Those two, I figured they were trouble from the moment they walked into my bar. I just didn’t know how much. They may have interrupted my plans for you at the bar, but you’re here now, and I have all the cards. He traced a hand from her cheek, down her body, Sarah flinching away from the intimate touch.

“I’m sorry it had to be like this, you’re so beautiful Sarah, but I have no choice.

“Don’t touch me.”

Without warning he backhanded her across the face, snapping her head to the side, splitting her lip and causing tears to spring to her eyes. He forced the knot of the gag between her teeth again, tying it cruelly tight at the back of her head.

“Do you know how hard this has been for me? Until you, I never had to get my hands dirty before. It’s always been easy, just put a picture of the girl in the box, chant the chant and then she’s gone. The odd fake witness statement here and there and no one’s any of the wiser. But you? First you manage to escape him at the bar, then you survive a blaze that should have killed you within seconds of it starting. Next thing I know I’m sitting in my car by the diner with a balaclava and a bottle of chloroform like some sort of psycho, waiting to kidnap a pretty girl in broad daylight.”

As he was talking he was clearing a space on a small table to the side, the only other relatively clean and stable stick of furniture in the place. Reaching for a black bag he pulled out some strange items, black candles, some strange bundles of what could have been herbs, and a small wooden chest, from which he removed a large red crystal, setting it down in the centre of what looked worryingly to Sarah like a makeshift altar. She struggled against her bonds again as he lit the candles, the black wax emitting an oddly unpleasant smell, unlike anything she had smelt before, her eyes widening in terror as he drew from his pocket a photograph of her, disfigured with weird symbols. He placed the photo in the box, and closed the lid tightly, dropping to his knees and muttering strange words under his breath as he did so. To Sarah’s horror the crystal began to glow with a pulsing light.

Gary sprung to his feet, turning to Sarah with an apologetic but nervous look in his eye. “I should go, but Sarah, don’t be scared OK. This whole thing will be over soon.”

She watched him leave the cabin, locking the door firmly behind him. Desperately she worked at the knots binding her to the table but they were immovable. The crystal glow grew brighter still, still it was almost blinding, and Sarah was forced to avert her eyes from the punishing glare. A figure began to take shape, and the glare of the crystal started to die to a ruby glow again as the creature blinked into existence, turning to stare at Sarah, red eyes glowing like fire in the dark, evil claws on both hands. The thing hissed an otherworldly hiss, a noise that caused goosebumps to raise on her arms. An ice cold trickle of fear ran down her back as it grinned, showing a mouth full of razor sharp teeth, sloping over to where she lay bound with cat like grace. It stood at her side looking down at her, and its eyes lit up even brighter.

Sarah screamed in pain as it raked its claws across her stomach, blood springing to the surface and staining the tattered remains of her tank top. Watching through her haze of pain as the creature raised its bloodstained claws to its mouth and licked them clean. She desperately tried to cling on to the threads of consciousness as it clawed at her arms, blood trickling down and soaking into the rope that bound her wrists, which were already torn and bloody from the rough rope restraints. Her head looked to the side as it bent its head extending an unbelievably long tongue to lick at the oozing wounds on her abdomen. The touch was like acid and Sarah screamed again under the gag, tears leaking from her eyes, and as pain and fear and blood loss finally claimed her, her last thought was of Sam’s brown eyes, and his smile as he’d held her in the motel bed.

“I’m sorry Sam,” she thought as darkness overtook her “I know you tried.”


	9. Chapter 9

The Winchesters crept silently through the dark woodland, Dean laying a hand on Sam’s arm as the taller man twitched impatiently. “What is it?”  
“Do you hear that?”  
“What? Dean we don’t have time for this, he could be sacrificing Sarah right now.”  
Dean spun, pushing Sam up against a nearby tree and laying a hand over his mouth. “Shut up Sammy I heard something.”   
Now Sam could hear it too, twigs snapping, branches being brushed out of the way, the unmistakeable chorus of a running man in a forest. Releasing his grip on his brother Dean signalled for Sam to take position the other side of the path. The brothers waited, the noise was unmistakeably getting closer, until they could hear the sound of heavy breathing. As one they sprung from their hiding places, rugby tackling the figure to the ground, Dean pinning him to the woodland floor,   
“Evening Gary, out for a moonlight stroll? “  
Gary stared back up at them, fear and panic in his cowardly eyes. “Please, don’t hurt me.”   
Sam pressed the muzzle of his weapon up against Gary’s sweating forehead, his voice a dark threatening growl “Where is she?”  
As they approached the ruined old cabin Sam and Dean could see a terribly familiar orange light gleaming out of the windows. Gary led the way, his hands tied in front of him, and Dean’s gun buried between his shoulder blades.  
“Please don’t make me go in there.”   
Sam sprinted to the door of the cabin, closely followed by Dean and a reticent Gary. Dean signalled a three count then as one the boys shouldered the door. The ancient wood splintered under the force of the blow, sending the door clean off its hinges. Weapons raised they flew into the room, Dean throwing Gary into a corner. The Demon was standing over an unconscious Sarah who was laying bound and gagged on a table, her clothes were tattered and she was covered in blood. The creature lift its head from where it had been lapping at Sarah’s bleeding stomach, and tuned to growl at the intruders, almost flying across the room towards Dean and Sam.   
They dove in opposite directions, Dean tackling it and punching it. “Go get her!” he yelled at his brother.   
Sam stumbled over to where Sarah was laid out. He looked down at her too pale face. “Oh God, baby,” she was still, icy cold to touch, and bleeding from claw marks raking her belly arms and legs and for a moment he thought she was dead, but he brought a hand to cup her face,   
“It’s going to be alright Sarah, I’m here now.”   
Slowly her eyes flickered open, and she blinked up at him with clouded eyes as he pulled the gag from her mouth.   
“Sam?”   
“That’s right baby, just hold on, we’re going to get you out of here.”   
The cabin shook with the force of a body slamming into the wall, and Sam looked up to the see the Demon advancing on Dean, who was slowly picking himself up off the floor. “Little help here Sam!”   
Sam launched himself across the table at the Demon, knocking it out of its path to his brother and rolling with it across the floor. Dean was on his feet again, diving across the room to where his gun had been knocked aside in the fight. He squeezed the trigger putting a bullet in the Demons chest, but it just seemed to distract him, sending him stalking towards Dean instead.   
“You’re crazy!” piped up Gary from his corner. “Bullets can’t hurt him.”   
Dean fired another two rounds. “I know!” he called back. “I just needed to distract it.”   
Behind them, Sam was rising to his feet, the demons crystal in his hands, and lifting the gem high over his head he smashed it to the ground. The gem shattered and Red eyes’ back arched in a hiss of agony, a fierce gust of air blowing Sam and Dean backwards, Sam landing over the table where Sarah lay. Turning, he threw himself over her, covering her and protecting her with his body as with the roar of rushing demonic winds the creature howled again, before shattering into a thousand flaming smoky fragments and vanishing. Dean looked up at Sam from his position on the floor. There was complete silence in the room for a second, before a terrible gurgling noise burst from the corner where Gary curled on the floor.   
Dean spun weapon raised, and Sam tightened his protective grip on Sarah, whose eyes were wide with terror as she saw what was happening to the bartender. Sam placed his hands over her eyes. “Don’t look baby.”   
His skin was literally melting off of his bones as he screamed and gurgled, writhing on the floor in agony, his hair grew long and grey, shrivelling before them. He was ageing in years per second before their eyes and within ten seconds he let out one final death rattle before his desiccated corpse hit the cabin floor.   
Dean turned to his brother. “Dude, what the hell happened?”   
“He didn't make the sacrifice, when the Demon was gone, the power that was keeping him young went too.”   
He lifted himself off Sarah, reaching for his knife, “Help me with her.”   
Dean rapidly sliced through the bonds tying her to the table, wincing when the ropes stuck to the blood matting her abused wrists and ankles. Pulling off his overshirt he balled it into a bandage, pushing it against her bleeding stomach,   
“These aren’t deep thank God, but she’s lost a lot of blood.”   
She was semi-conscious, delirious, but she seemed to come back to herself a little at the pain of the pressure of the improvised bandage pushing against her wounds.   
“Dean?”   
He smiled at her reassuringly. “In the flesh Princess. Sit tight we’re gonna get you out of here.”   
She turned to Sam, raising a weak hand to his chest. “You came for me.” She whispered.   
Sam softly kissed her forehead. “I promised I would didn't I.”   
Dean was busy tying off the improvised bandages round her arms when her eyes closed and she lapsed back into unconsciousness. “Dammit, she’s in shock.”   
He put an ear to her mouth, gauging her breathing, one hand feeling for a pulse. “Breathings steady, heartrates OK, she’s too cold though. We need to get her back to the motel." Sam was already shrugging out of his jacket, wrapping it around Sarah’s shoulders  
” Not a hospital?”  
“And how exactly do we explain injuries like these? Not like there’s grizzlies in these woods like with the Wendigo. Besides, she’s not lost too much blood, I can treat her myself.” Sam scooped her gently up in his strong arms, allowing Dean to tuck his own jacket around her. “Take her back to Baby.”   
Sam looked at his brother quizzically. “What are you going to do?”   
The older brother nodded towards the skeleton on the floor. “I’m gonna salt and burn that sucker, and this cabin too. Don’t want to take any chances with a pissed off Bartender Spirit. I’ll meet you at the Car.”   
Sam was almost at the Impala, Sarah clasped tightly in his arms when he felt the warmth of the flames from the burning cabin at his back, and he hurried his steps towards the car, awkwardly opening the rear seat and sliding Sarah onto the back seat, covering her with a blanket they kept under the seat for emergencies. Climbing in the passenger side, he turned to reach over the seat and brush a stray lock of hair away from her too pale face.   
Dean returned a few minutes later, “Jobs done, let’s get moving.” He twisted the key in the ignition and the Impala headed out of the darkness, back towards civilisation.


	10. Chapter 10

Back at the motel Sam sat by Sarah’s bedside, clasping one of Sarah’s hands in both of his as his brother worked, first aid kit open on the table by the bed. Dean pointed at Sarah’s black eye and split lip. 

“Demon didn’t do that, that’s from a human fist.” He gently out a damp washcloth to her face, washing away the dirt and grime and exposing further the purpling bruise.   
“Bastard, wish he was still here so I could show him how it feels getting hit by someone bigger than you.” Placing the flannel to one side he pulled black the blanket to contemplate the state of Sarah’s tattered clothing. “I’m going to have to take her clothes off so I can clean those wounds properly. I need you to keep her calm in case she wakes up, god knows what she’s been through."

Sam’s face was twisted up in grief and pain, and Dean reached up a hand to smack his brother hard on the arm. “Hey, listen to me, this is not your fault.” 

“I promised her I’d keep her safe Dean, just like I promised Jess, like I failed Maggie. Maybe I’m cursed."

“Do not flake out on me now Sam Winchester or I’ll beat you myself. This girl is alive, we saved her, we killed the thing that was after her and now she needs you to hold it together. Do you understand me?”

Straightening his shoulders Sam nodded. Stroking his hand through her hair, he watched his brother reached for the scissors, slicing through the front of her tank top, and gently puling the clothes away, before moving down to her ankles, pulling off her trainers and socks, before reaching for the scissors again, cutting his way up the legs of her jeans, cutting them away, rather than pulling them down and risking aggravating the claw marks on her legs. The denim was stuck to her legs with the blood, and Sam winced as he watched Dean pull the fabric away as gently as he was able. As he worked Dean kept up a steady stream of commentary to Sarah, letting her know exactly which part of her broken body he was going to touch next. She was left exposed in just her dirty bra and girl boxers, and in this condition the extent of her injuries were startlingly obvious. The main concern was the claw marks across her lower stomach, but her arms and thighs also bore signs of the creatures mark. There was a bruise running around her chest from the rope that had bound her down, and her ankles and wrists were mottled with blue bruises and grazes from her struggles against the cruelly tight bonds.

Dean was examining the cuts on her stomach, wiping the worst of the blood way with a washcloth before treating each mark with antiseptic. “Your girlfriend got lucky Sam, these aren’t deep. With those claws it should have eviscerated her, but from the look of these it wanted to feed of a living victim, needed to make sure she didn’t bleed out too fast.” He threw a smaller bandage to Sam “Clean and bind her wrists.” 

Sam was pale. “If we’d have been any longer Dean.”

“Well we weren’t. Rode in at the right moment like the white knights that we are.”

His joke made Sammy give his first small smile since Sarah was taken, and for a while they worked in silence, cleaning and binding the scratches and cuts that littered her body. Dean fetched one of Sammy’s thick checked overshirts. “Help me lift her up.” 

Sam helped his brother sit Sarah upright, supporting her limp body against his broad chest, while Dean slid her arms gently into the sleeves, laying her back down and fastening the buttons. Finally he pulled the blanket up to her chin, keeping her as warm as he could. “Not much to do now till she wakes up.” Standing, Dean stretched, “I’ll crash on the couch, your freakishly long limbs can stretch on my bed.” 

Sam shook his head, eyes focussed on Sarah’s face. “You take the bed, I’m going to stay up for a bit.”

Dean shook his head. “Up to you kiddo, but make sure you get some rest too OK?” Removing his boots, he disappeared into the bathroom, emerging in his sleepwear. “Last chance for a decent mattress.” 

“Seriously Dean, you take it.” The older Winchester clapped a hand on his little brother’s shoulder, before dropping in to the opposite bed, falling asleep almost immediately. Sam dimmed the light and continued to keep his vigil, listening to the steady breathing of his brother and his girl.

Sarah blinked her eyes open, attempting to focus on her surroundings. Her vision was still burry and her entire body ached as though it had been put through a mincing machine. Looking either side of her she thought she recognised the Winchesters crummy motel room, daylight shining through the salts in the window blinds, and looking down her body she was confused to find herself almost naked apart from a large checked shirt. Sitting next the bed with his head resting on the mattress, snoring gently was Sam, and she went to touch him before a memory came crashing down. She was tied up in the cabin, the Demon was licking at the blood pooling on her clawed stomach.

Panicking at the image she tried to push herself upright, but a sharp pain shot through her middle, and her wounded arms struggled to support her weight. Sam sat up at the motion on the bed, eyes widening at the sight of Sarah wake. He slipped an arm behind her shoulders, taking her weight just as her arms gave out, and lowering her to the bed, even as she struggled weakly against him. As gently as he could he held her down so she couldn’t hurt herself in h0er fight, large hands wrapping round her slim arms. “Sarah, it’s alright, it’s alright, it’s me, it’s Sam, you’re safe OK, you’re safe.” He kept up the gentle litany of reassurance, till she stopped struggling, and reached out a trembling arm to touch his face. “Sam?” She whispered, tears filling her eyes. “I’m dead aren’t I, this is a dream.”

He held her hand against his face. “Not a dream sweetheart, Dean and I we found you, you’re safe, you’re in our motel room. Dean patched you up real good.”   
Just at that moment, Dean entered the motel room, shopping bags in hand, and a takeout tray of coffee in the other. Seeing that Sarah was awake he set down the baggage and came round to sit at Sarah’s other side on the narrow bed. “Morning sleeping beauty, how are you feeling?”

She groaned slightly. “Mostly like I was attacked by a vicious cheese grater. What happened to me? And where are my clothes?”

“We had to undress you to clean your injuries.” Dean answered, “That’s one of Sammy’s shirts you’re rocking right now.” He handed her a glass of water, and drew two pills from his pocket “These’ll help with the pain. He helped her sit up just enough to take a few sips of water and swallow the tablets, before laying her back down again.

“What’s the last thing you remember?” asked Sam. 

She thought back. “I was in some cabin in the middle of nowhere, Gary tied me up and left me, said I was going to be a sacrifice so he could have a long life and the bar would be successful, used a big crystal and summoned the Demon, it hurt me, clawed me, and was licking at the blood. It gets fuzzy after that, I think I remember you being there, and someone was screaming. The next thing I know I’m here.”

“The Demons dead.” Reassured Dean, "the crystal was its power source and Sammy bust that thing into a million pieces, it’s not going to come after you anymore.”

“What about Gary?”

Sam and Dean looked at each other awkwardly, before Sam spoke. “He’s dead too Baby. When the Demon dies it broke the spell that was unnaturally extending his life.” 

“There’s more” Dean told her.

Sam looked at him in question too. “I went by the bar this morning. Place went up in flames last night right about the time that Sam broke that Crystal. Fire department are saying electrical fault, but it looks like it spontaneously combusted.”

Sarah chocked back a bitter sob, “So as well as taking my flat, it’s now taken my job too. Great.” Sarah looked up at the two men “So how did you find me last night. Where were we?”

“Found an old photo album at the bar.” Dean answered “Photos of Gary through the ages, not that he was going by Gary back then. When you disappeared we checked his house first, and when we turned up nothing it was Sam’s idea to look through the records. The first owner of the place had a hunting cabin out in the woods, quiet, out of the way, just the spot for a moonlit sacrifice.”

Sarah shivered, as the nearness of her escape struck home and she looked up at Sam, holding out her arms like a child. Without hesitation he climbed onto the bed next to her, wrapping her in his strong arms, suffusing her pained body with his comforting warmth. Her eyelids were heavy as she looked at Dean, “I’m very sleepy.”

“That’ll be the pills, and you lost quite a bit of blood. You should get some sleep and rest up, give your body some time to recover.” Drowsily she nodded, burying her nose in Sam’s T-shirt as she gave in to the exhaustion and fell back sound asleep. Completely unselfconsciously Sam pressed a kiss to her forehead, “Sleep sweetheart, I’ll be right here when you wake up.” 

Dean handed him one of the takeout cups of coffee, clearing his throat awkwardly. “Look Sammy, you know now the case is finished we should be leaving town right, moving on, finding other people who need saving?” 

Sam gulped down the last of his coffee, staring at Sarah’s peaceful face even as he answered his brother. “I can’t leave her Dean. I told you I’ve not felt like this about anyone since Jess, last night when I thought I lost her, I’ve never been so scared in my whole life.”

“You’ve only known the girl three days Sammy.”

“I knew she was special from the moment I saw her in that bar, from the moment she told me that Big Mikey didn’t like losing at pool to out of town hustlers.”

Dean had the good grace to look awkward. "She made me hey.”

“Oh yeah, she had you measured up from minute one.”

“Look, she’s got no home, no job, no family, no one to miss her right?”

Anger flashed in Sam’s eyes “She’s got me.”

“Woah there easy tiger, I mean apart from you and me.” 

“So?” 

“So we know what that’s like, and anyway I like her, she’s pretty, she’s smart, she’s most likely gonna stop either of us from doing anything monumentally dangerous or stupid which let’s face it we both need.” 

Sam narrowed his eyes. “Dean, what are you suggesting?”


End file.
